Archive for the ‘Fantasie’ Category

Peter & Max: A Fables Novel by Bill Willingham was released in paperback in late December (incidentally, while it retails for $14.99, you can currently pick it up at Amazon for a cool $10.19). Likewise, the E-book is available for those that prefer reading on electronic devices and is currently available for $9.99.

More on the electronic release from Vertigo:

Based on FABLES, the New York Times bestselling, Hugo Award nominated, Eisner Award winning and one of the longest running comic book series published by Vertigo, PETER & MAX: A FABLES NOVEL tells the dark story of brothers Peter Piper, of Pickled Pepper fame, and Max Piper, the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Willingham deftly weaves an epic tale of good and evil, sibling rivalry, magic, music and a quest for revenge that spans from medieval times to the present day, from the heart of the Black Forest to NYC. Full of vivid detail, imagination and adventure, PETER & MAX illuminates the breadth of Willingham’s knowledge of literature and his true storytelling ability.

So get ready to download PETER & MAX: A FABLES NOVEL to your favorite device and take this magical story with you to lands near and far!

If you’d like to sample the book first, Vertigo has chapters one and two available to read online for free. This was a great novel, whether you are familiar with Fables or not (though all the better if you are) so get to it my friends!

CBR has a great interview with Peter S. Beagle about his critically acclaimed novel The Last Unicorn, the upcoming Blu-Ray release of the classic animated feature of the same name, his breadth of short stories and upcoming projects:

More than being one of the most beloved and critically praised fantasy novels in recent decades, “The Last Unicorn” was also adapted into a wildly popular animated film in 1982 and has since been released in a restored Blu-ray edition. Most recently, the novel was adapted into a comic book miniseries from IDW Publishing. Beagle spoke with CBR about the project, taking a look back and forward at his long and storied career.

The full article can be found here and proved to be a very interesting read. I wholeheartedly recommend that fans of The Last Unicorn, or those simply looking for a great fantasy writer to follow, that they track down Beagle’s other works as well as he’s, ahem, definitely no one trick pony. Come Lady Death, which he cites in the article, is one of my favorite short stories in fact and given how prolific he’s been as a writer I’ve no doubt you’ll discover any number of gems that you’ll be proud to have in your collection. I know I have and that I continue to look forward to more.

‘I just know this is what I’m supposed to do with my life. The second I get a contract on the novel, I’ll quit my crappy job and make something of myself.”

Two issues in (at least, after enthusiastically seeking out a review copy) and I’m glad to report that Stan Lee & Chris Roberson’s Starborn isn’t just another comic series on the shelf. It has reminded me once again why Stan Lee’s comics are always a joy to read, and is definitely reinforcing why Chris Roberson is currently one of the best writers in the business (seriously, check out his work on Vertigo’s iZombie with artist Mike Allred, you”re brain will thank me). If the trend continues, Starborn will become one of the handful of comics that I happily collect and is more than worth passing on to you.

To set the book up for a moment, Benjamin Warner is an aspiring writer mindlessly drudging through the work week in an unfortunate office job while he chips away at his first novel in his free time. Warner is immediately a likable character, and as something of an everyman I imagine that most of us will relate to his wanting to better his situation and follow his dreams — though I doubt we’ll have to face an alien horde that seems intent on our destruction the next time we drag ourselves in to work.

It seems that the characters from his books are more real than he could have realized and save for the timely intervention of a childhood friend, in the form of the lovely Tara Takamoto, he would have been doomed to destruction by the claws of his very creations. The book moves at break neck speed and there’s never a dull moment as Khary Randolph masterfully lays out the story in his uniquely dynamic style. The pages prove very fun to look at whether the story has Warner sitting at his desk, or falling from a 50-story skyscraper and I like that with situations like this that the book certainly doesn’t take itself too seriously. I’m also looking forward to seeing some of the world building Roberson appears to have in store for us as we’re introduced to the cosmic side of our “Starborn” hero. This is a fun one so far folks, and there’s always room for a little more of that in comics, at least there certainly is in my collection.

If interested, look for Starborn #2 from BOOM! Studios this Wednesday at your local comic shop. See if you can’t pick up the first issue as well, as both will be well worth the trip.

I’ve been waiting to pick up the trade paperback compilation of Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom but I’m awful tempted to pick this one up just for the new Michael Kormarck cover. Each of the first 5 covers by Kormarck so far have been great and its a real treat to see him working on the covers for one of my favorite characters (the early Valiant years, not Gold Key…I’m not that quite that old yet)! Here’s hoping these covers are included in the TPB release…

If you’re inclined to pick up the single issue, it’ll be on store shelves later this month.

Doctor Solar, the Man of the Atom, is the greatest single power in existence. But Tanek Nuro, a ruthless global power broker, has acquired the key code to the operating system of the universe, and he means to change things. With no limit to Nuro’s monstrous ambition and only Doctor Solar in his way, a war of biblical proportions starts now. Also starting now, the origin saga of the Man of the Atom. How did a middle-aged man of science come to command the fires of creation? Everything you know . . . and everything you didn’t . . . comes to the fore in this double-feature extravaganza not to be missed!

The age before the Heralds abandoned us and the Knights Radiant turned against us. A time when there was still magic in the world and honor in the hearts of men.

The world became ours, and we lost it. Nothing, it appears, is more challenging to the souls of men than victory itself.

Or was that victory an illusion all along? Did our enemies realize that the harder they fought, the stronger we resisted? Perhaps they saw that the heat and the hammer only make for a better grade of sword. But ignore the steel long enough, and it will eventually rust away.

There are four whom we watch. The first is the surgeon, forced to put aside healing to become a soldier in the most brutal war of our time. The second is the assassin, a murderer who weeps as he kills. The third is the liar, a young woman who wears a scholar’s mantle over the heart of a thief. The last is the highprince, a warlord whose eyes have opened to the past as his thirst for battle wanes.

The world can change. Surgebinding and Shardwielding can return; the magics of ancient days can become ours again. These four people are key.

One of them may redeem us.

And one of them will destroy us.

What Drew Me to the Book:

As anyone that’s visited Following that Raven in the last couple of years has likely surmised, Brandon Sanderson is currently my favorite modern fantasy writer so to say that I was looking forward to The Way of Kings would be something of an understatement. And even if I wasn’t already a huge fan, who could look at that epic Michael Whelan cover and not be drawn to the book!? It’s one of the strongest covers I’ve encountered and I suspect that more than a few readers will be gained gazing into the possibilities it suggests in its striking color and detail.

The Review:

Let me clarify that I will be reviewing The Way of Kings based on the Macmillan audio performance by fan favorites Michael Kramer and Kate Reading. I purchased the large tome for my library shelves as well, and am very impressed by the production values, illustrations, and reference material that it contains and will be referring to it often in the future to heighten my experience with the series no doubt, but I couldn’t pass up the chance to listen to the book as read by these two veteran voice actors that I already enjoy so much. Truthfully, it may have been their best performance yet. Whatever the case, they certainly brought their “A” game and I highly recommend that fans of the book (or potential fans) give the audio version a listen if at all possible.

The Way of Kings: Book One of the Stormlight Archive is the inaugural entry in a 10-volume epic, and it hits the ground at a sprint, thrusting the reader right into battle following an impressive prologue/prelude set-up which sets a grim mood following the wake of an apparent betrayal amongst immortal warriors, bringing desolation to the land of Roshar. The battles that ensue are fought not only by highly trained soldiers in the Alethi and Parshendi armies (the two warring sides in a 6-year struggle) but on a larger scale between great warriors donning coveted armored carapaces with superhuman capabilities, likewise by unarmored individuals able to harness the Stormlight prevalent in a world of high storms, granting them preternatural abilities, and one of Sanderson’s best magical “systems” yet. I can also say right off the bat that Sanderson crafts these clashes (and, yes, there are many) with meticulous care and outside the characters themselves the scenes of battle were the strongest part of the novels for me, rich in detail and never losing sight of the excitement that should be implicit in such scenes, particularly those involving close combat.

Following four principle characters throughout, The Way of Kings provides strong characterization in each case: Szeth is a reluctant assassin whose great power is as mysterious as his past and he gets the ball rolling quickly in the book with a thrilling battle and the death of a king, Shallan is a young woman who rides the high seas seeking an opportunity to apprentice under a gifted scholar, and heretic, named Jasnah; but there are motives underlying her quest that will have great repercussions the both of them, particularly as she begins to confront herself. Dalinar, the “Blackthorn,” is an aging Alethi high prince, a wielder of Shardplate armoer, and a commander in King Elhokar’s army who awakens to visions of a cryptic “final desolation” while striving to unite his fellow high princes as a unified force to win the war against the drawn out war against the Parshendi and prepare for its coming. Finally, Kaladin, a great military man (and former surgeon’s apprentice) in the Alethi army tragically finds himself a slave to the very army in which he was enlisted after having been betrayed by a “light eyes” he once trusted. His trials as a bridge-runner (a job with a rather high mortality rate) provide the bulk of the narrative, and seeing him awaken to the potential within himself in this dire situation is a joy to behold throughout the narrative, particularly as his and Dalinar’s story begin to run parallel, ultimately converging.

Roshar is world whose hard landscape is filled with ever present danger, be it the constant threat of death on the shattered plains in battle, terror at being confronted by one of the many massive beasts that roam the chasms, mistrust and deceit among companions and peers, assassinations around every bend, or even the elements themselves that ravage the landscape with consistent high storms to deadly consequence. The characters that inhabit this world have to have a bit of grisliness in them simply in order to survive and while I have run across the minor criticism that the main players are cut a little too rigid in this mold, offering black and white morality in their roles, it is a criticism that I cannot level as I readily found what I perceived to be real “character” in both the righteous and deplorable actions of notable players (never having been one to believe that “character” is necessarily found in the gray areas) and real concern for the sticky situations that certainly provided the reader opportunities to fret over the actions they took and the consequences that followed. You’ll root for and against the principle and supporting cast and that certainly indicates something worthwhile to me. Additionally, there’s a lot to be said for supporting characters like Jasnah, Sylphrena (“Sil”), Navani, Wit and Saddeus (among others) that populate the novel. At times they outright steal the show and, along with the particulars of Sanderson’s magic system, make the world a much richer, more interesting, place to visit.

The tale interweaves through each character with ease as they come into spheres of influence one with another, the story working its threads skillfully toward a cohesive whole despite a few unanswered questions at the novels end — but such is the case with this being the first in a large multi-volume series and I was not unsatisfied at the conclusion. To the contrary, I was champing at the bit for the next novel. With my studies ramping up I knew that 2010 would be a hectic one and that I wouldn’t be able to read nearly as many novels of my own choosing as I’d like, but I am glad to have been able to finally experience this one and am glad to say that it’s definitely a journey worth taking — incidentally, something the novel itself has more than a little to say about.

Like so many other Brandon Sanderson fans, I pre-ordered The Way of Kings: Book One of the Stormlight Archive in tome form, and was extremely impressed with the production values that went into the hardcover (though how my shelves will hold the weight of this hefty multi-volume series is beyond me) but with Michael Kramer and Kate Reading (of Wheel of Time fame) providing voice work for Macmillan’s audio version of the series I couldn’t help but purchase it in audio as well to experience what they bring to the table.

Eleven chapters into the audio book and I think these two fine voice actors have manged to get even better since my last outing with them in the Wheel of Time series, they’ve really managed to bring the characters to life with their incredible ranges, and it’s been a joy all this week to get in the car and listen for an hour or two each day on my drive to and from work (it’s also been a great way to get my mind off of this week’s mid-terms, if for a little while).

If you’re interested in experiencing the book this way, remember that Audible.com has the book for only 1 credit (a book of this length usually costing 2) until October 31st. Happy Halloween!

Contact Info. & Reviews

Contact Info.

Should you have a quick comment, suggestion or a general question you can feel free to contact me at:

texcap1(at)yahoo.com

Reviews

Should you be interested in me reviewing your book, feel free to contact me at the e-mail address above (or contact me within the comments section of a particular post). There will be no responsibility on my part to review a particular book, and I can't promise that I'll be able to drop everything to read it straight way, but I will do my best to leave honest feedback where I can, and gushing praise where I feel it is warranted on the site.

As for the genres I'm willing to review, they pretty much run the gambit, but I'm most interested in focusing on fantasy, sci-fi and mystery/horror for the purposes of the site. Still, I'm open minded and willing to review where able so contact me if you think I can help draw attention to your honest to goodness effort.

The only other provisions are that while I will read small press books, these do not include print on demand efforts at this point, nor do I have the time, interest (or eyes) for reviewing e-books. There may be a few other exceptions in there but feel free to ask away.